Open Heaven 23 January 2019 – Deferring Gratification?

Open Heaven 23 January 2019 Wednesday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Deferring Gratification?

Topic: Deferring Gratification? (Open Heaven 23 January 2019)

Memorise: “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”- Romans 8:18

Read: Hebrews 11:24-26 (KJV)

24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter;

25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;

26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.

Bible in One Year: Mark 15-16, Isaiah 22:5-25

Open Heaven 23 January 2019 Wednesday MESSAGE:

At a point in a person’s life, he or she must defer gratification in order to succeed in this world and in the hereafter. This truth must sink into the heart of every Christian, especially the younger generation. It is unfortunate that more often than not, people do not see the need to defer gratification. They want to enjoy everything right now! Unfortunately, life is not utopian in nature. The reality is that there is no gain without pain. Even our salvation which some people erroneously describe as “free” was paid for by the Saviour. He agonised on the cross to procure our liberty. Whether in the temporal or eternal realm, gratification requires deferment.

Daniel stands as a great example of someone who deferred gratification. His act of sacrifice as a young fellow upholding God’s covenant is recorded on Daniel 1:8:

“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.”

The moment Daniel and his brethren matriculated into the University of Babylon, caterers were assigned to feed them with all sorts of delicacies, including the royal wine, but Daniel deferred these fringe benefits in order to excel. No wonder, Daniel eventually enjoyed the largesse of occupying a high office after he and his colleagues graduated and became ministers in the king’s cabinet. This is the reward of deferring pleasure. Unfortunately, some children of God refuse to postpone enjoyment in the present world for eternal bliss in the world to come. 1 Corinthians 9:25 says:

“And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.”

Even our Lord Jesus Christ deferred the pleasure of food and chose to suffer hunger when the devil told Him to turn stone into bread (Luke 4:1-4). This was what Esau could not do, and he sold his birthright for a meal (Genesis 25:29-34). Beloved, for you to make it to heaven, you need to forgo certain things that may not necessarily be sinful but may constitute a hindrance to your spiritual growth and cause you to be vulnerable to sin and its enticing allurements. For this reason, 1 Corinthians 6:12 says:

“All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.”

Learn to be like Apostle Paul who considered as being worthless those things which should have been valuable to him, so that he could attain the high calling of God (Philippians 3:7-8).

Open Heaven 23 January 2019 Wednesday Action Point:

Consider those things you are doing or using which can serve as impediments to your Christian calling and do away with them.

Also Read: Open Heaven 22 January 2019 – Longing to Know Jesus?

Open Heaven 23 January 2019 Wednesday Hymn 10: I Have Decided To Follow Jesus

  1. I have decided to follow Jesus;
    I have decided to follow Jesus;
    I have decided to follow Jesus;
    No turning back, no turning back.
  2. The world behind me, the cross before me;
    The world behind me, the cross before me;
    The world behind me, the cross before me;
    No turning back, no turning back.
  3. Though none go with me, I still will follow;
    Though none go with me, I still will follow;
    Though none go with me, I still will follow
    No turning back, no turning back.
  4. My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
    My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
    My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
    No turning back, no turning back.
  5. Will you decide now to follow Jesus?
    Will you decide now to follow Jesus?
    Will you decide now to follow Jesus?
    No turning back, no turning back.

Open Heaven 23 January 2019 Wednesday Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC. Open Heaven 23 January 2019 Wednesday Daily Devotional

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Lord Jesus, come into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Personal Saviour. I believe in my heart You died and rose from the dead to save me. Thank You Lord for saving me, in Jesus name Amen.

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Franklin Graham Returns Fire after Lady Gaga Calls Mike Pence ‘Worst Representation’ of Christianity

Franklin Graham Returns Fire after Lady Gaga Calls Mike Pence ‘Worst Representation’ of Christianity



Franklin Graham is clapping back after Lady Gaga criticized Vice President Mike Pence calling him the “worst representation of what it means to be a Christian.” 


After news broke that the Vice President’s wife, Karen Pence, would be working for a Private Christian school that requires its students and staff to believe that marriage is between a man and a woman, the “Poker Face” singer criticized Pence during one of her Los Vegas concerts.


She said, “And to Mike Pence, who thinks it’s acceptable that his wife work at a school that bans LGBTQ, you are wrong. You say we should not discriminate against Christianity; you are the worst representation of what it means to be a Christian.”


She continued, “I am a Christian woman and what I do know about Christianity is that we bear no prejudice and everybody is welcome. So you can take all that disgrace Mr. Pence and you can look yourself in the mirror and you’ll find it right there.”


The “Mother Monster” received heavy backlash after making these comments including from Evangelical Pastor Franklin Graham, Relevant Magazine reports.  


Graham took to Facebook to comment on the issue writing, “Lady Gaga, Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, may be a very talented singer and actress, but her comments about Vice President Mike Pence and Second Lady Karen Pence are…

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Lady Gaga says US VP is ‘the worst representation of what it means to be a Christian’

News that Second Lady Karen Pence was returning to her former role at Immanuel Christian School in northern Virginia sparked outrage last week.

Applicants to the institution must agree on traditional Christian teaching, including that marriage can only be between a man and a woman.

 

The multi-Grammy-Award winning singer stopped mid-song during a concert on Saturday to slam the president for the continued government shutdown, before she put Mike Pence under the spotlight.

“To Mike Pence, who thinks it’s acceptable that his wife work at a school that bans LGBTQ, you are wrong,” she can be heard saying in a video posted by a fan on YouTube.

“You say we should not discriminate against Christianity; you are the worst representation of what it means to be a Christian.

“I am a Christian woman and what I do know about Christianity is that we bear no prejudice and everybody is welcome. So you can take all that disgrace Mr Pence and you can look yourself in the mirror and you’ll find it right there.”

Wikimedia Commons

 

Mr Pence has hit back at critics and in an interview with Eternal Word Television Network, he said that the negative reaction was “deeply offensive.”

He added: “My wife and I have been in the public eye for quite a while. We’re used to the criticism.

“But I have to tell you, to see major news organizations attacking Christian…

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45 People Killed, 70 Injured in Taliban Attack in Afghanistan

45 People Killed, 70 Injured in Taliban Attack in Afghanistan



Some 45 people were killed and another 70 wounded in a Taliban-led attack in Afghanistan Monday.


According to CBN News, Taliban fighters launched an attack on a military base and training center in east Afghanistan. Many of the dead and injured were military officials.


Monday, a suicide bomber by-passed a barrier without being stopped and drove a Humvee into the base and detonated a bomb as he drove the vehicle into the main building. Security forces tried to stop him by shooting at him as he drove through the entrance gate.


Council member Khawanin Sultani said the building collapsed. Four other attackers also tried shooting at Afghan troops after the building was hit. Soldiers killed those four Taliban soldiers.


The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and released a statement saying they are meeting with U.S. officials to discuss “ending the invasion of Iraq.”


While there were some 150 military personnel at the base at the time of the attack, there are reports that the death toll could be higher. A security official told the AP anonymously that he counted some 75 dead.


Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said he was ordering an investigation into the attack, adding that the “enemy had carried out a terrorist attack against the intelligence agency’s personnel, killed and wounded a number of honest sons of this homeland who were defending their country and…

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Christian MP praises independent review of Modern Day Slavery Act

The review, which is being led by MP Frank Field, has been commissioned by the Prime Minister.

The aim is to check if the Modern Slavery Act 2015 is working properly and recommend if any further reforms are needed.

 

Evidence has been taken from Faith Groups including the Church of England, the Roman Catholic Church and the Salvation Army.

Mr Field told Premier: “If one’s looking for the people of goodwill it’ll be church people…that are always in these great initiatives such as countering slave labour or making sure starving people don’t starve.

“It’s for the churches to continue and expand their role.”

The MP said evidence from churches has highlighted some of the key issues the inquiry plans to address.

Mr Field added: “They’ve been highlighting the real problem that many victims of slavery have…once they’ve escaped and regained their freedom.

“It’s inconceivable that we can do a report without reflecting the urgency that faith groups have reflected to us.”

Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

 

Mr Field also praised the churches for focusing public attention on the issue.

“The churches are already doing this,” he said.

“The Roman Catholics have got the Pope spearheading worldwide campaigns. And we see, in this country, very important initiatives.”

One of the practical actions the MP highlighted was an app for mobile phones developed as part of the Church…

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Supreme Court Allows Trump’s Transgender Military Ban to Go into Effect

Supreme Court Allows Trump’s Transgender Military Ban to Go into Effect



The U.S. Supreme Court handed the Trump administration and social conservatives a major victory Tuesday when it let stand the military’s ban on most transgender troops while lawsuits against the policy proceed. 


The debate is a holdover from the administration of President Obama, whose Department of Defense ended the ban on transgender troops and even allowed military personnel to undergo taxpayer-funded reconstruction surgery. 


After President Trump took office, the Department of Defense reversed that police and replaced it with one that allowed transgender personnel but prohibited those who had “a history or diagnosis of gender dysphoria.” The effect was to allow some transgender people to serve but only in their biological sex. 


Lower courts had blocked the Trump policy, but on Tuesday the Supreme Court ruled that the policy could go into effect while lower courts consider the cases. The Supreme Court refused the Trump administration’s request to take up the issue immediately.


The high court’s order was barely 100 words and noted that the court’s four liberal justices — Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — would have allowed lower courts to block the ban. At issue were preliminary injunctions from December 2017 that prevented it from going into effect.


“The District Court’s … order granting a…

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‘Lose hope and we might as well die’, says Zimbabwe bishop amid deadly unrest

Rt Rev Chad Nicholas Gandiya (not pictured) warned resolve on behalf of the nation was “crucial” in order to move on from unrest which has left twelve people dead.

He told Premier: “Even in spite of what’s going on, I would want to encourage us not to lose hope. Otherwise, we might just as well cease living.”

 

More than 600 have been arrested in demonstrations prompted after a significant rise in fuel prices which makes Zimbabwe the most expensive place in the world to buy petrol.

AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi

Pictured: An alleged victim of the crackdown.

 

President Emmerson Mnangagwa said “unacceptable” violence by security forces will be investigated. He also called for a “national dialogue” among political, civic and religious leaders.

The General Secretary of the Zimbabwe Council of Churches – an organisation representing more than two dozen denominations – signalled its readiness to take part.

 

Rev Dr Kenneth Mtata told Premier: “The population is polarised…there is a general acceptance that the Church plays this role to mediate between the different parties in the…

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New Video Footage Shows that Covington Catholic Schoolboys Did Not Harass Native American Protestors

New Video Footage Shows that Covington Catholic Schoolboys Did Not Harass Native American Protestors



New video footage is disproving claims made by mainstream media outlets that a Catholic Schoolboy was being blatantly racists by mocking and blocking the path of a Native American Elder at this weekend’s Indigenous People’s March. 


A video on Twitter of a Covington Catholic School student named Nick Sandmann and his classmates standing in front of and around a Native American Elder named Nathan Phillips went viral over the weekend leading many people and media outlets to call Sandmann and his classmates racists and bigots. In an interview with Phillips, he claimed that the students were also chanting “build that wall,” CBN News reports.


Covington Catholic High School also released a statement apologizing for their student’s actions and promised to conduct an investigation, ABC News reports.


Since the video’s release on Saturday, a full-length video was posted to Twitter by the Polish Patriot which has revealed that Sandmann had not actually engaged in a confrontation with Phillips, but Phillips had actually approached him. Additional videos also revealed that there was another protest group present during this confrontation called the Black Hebrews who were seen provoking the group of Native American calling them “dumb a** n*****s” and “demons” as well as calling the Covington Catholic school students, many of them in…

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Pastor’s daughter, 12, killed after snow fort collapses on her outside church

Esther Jung and a nine-year-old girl were attending services with their families at Rothem Church before they went out to play in a nearby snowbank, according to Arlington Heights police in Illinois.

The adults went to look for the pair an hour later and found them buried under snow before calling for help.

 

The police said both children were taken to hospital but Esther died shortly after arrival as a result of asphyxia and hypothermia.

Her friend was released from hospital on Monday after being treated for hypothermia and is expected to survive.

At her family’s home in Elk Grove Village, neighbours told ABC news that Esther would often build snow forts in the front garden.

Neighbour Peg Gradl said: “It’s just so sad. It’s something she loved to do, and she did regularly, so she was probably confident in her skills.

“Two little girls just having fun in the snow. It’s so normal, but it’s a danger we don’t often think of.”

The Arlington Heights Police Department has said it does not suspect foul play and has ruled the incident as an accident.

Stay up to date with the latest news stories from a Christian perspective. Sign up to our daily newsletter and receive more stories like this straight to your inbox every morning.

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Council removes church’s banner, labelling it a ‘distraction to motorists’

All Saints Church in Highertown put up a banner in a bid to encourage fundraising for its ‘The 10 10 Lifehouse Project’ which will create a new home for a number of community groups including those who help the homeless.

However, church members were shocked when the banner was pulled down by staff from management organisation Cormac, following orders from Cornwall Council.

 

Stuart Roden, a member of the church’s project group and a Truro city councillor told Cornishstuff.com: “The 10-10 Lifehouse project at All Saints church Highertown is a brilliant project.

“Last Wednesday morning at 8.15am, Cormac turned up and tore up the posts and moved the banner on the basis the verge adjacent to the church is ‘Cornwall Council land’.

“The banner was torn and damaged and the posts thrown into the church car park. There was no warning or attempt to discuss this with the church or even to ask them to move it onto church property.”

Truro Lifehouse Project

 

While the Cornwall Council has admitted it was responsible for the removal of posts and banners, it has insisted the “removed signs were then handed back over to a church representative”.

The Council also explained why it deemed the removal necessary: “Unfortunately, two banners had to be removed, on safety grounds, from a roadside verge where they were considered to be a distraction to motorists at a…

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